We went to see Layla tonight and she was so doped up that it seemed that she didn't even know or care we were there. She was shaking when I put her in my lap, but it didn't take long for her to relax, put her head in the inside of my elbow, and fall asleep just like she used to.
We had a lot of questions for her doctor, but she was in surgery and wouldn't be out anytime soon. So we thought we would just sit there with our sleeping Layla for the 2 hours we could be there. I massaged her back legs and her tail. Scott played with her back toes. All of a sudden he said DID YOU SEE THAT? He pressed on them a little more and her thigh twitched. He did it again, it twitched again. He said the first time he could swear she pulled her foot away slightly. Then we kept trying and trying and NOTHING. She was still laying on me with her eyes almost closed the whole time. We thought we just imagined it.
Not long after, we weren't touching her at all except my hand was resting on the back of her neck as we watched tv. And something in her back half, something that was resting on my right leg, moved or twitched. She was sleeping, but there was definite movement of SOMETHING. And we weren't poking or prodding anything. It gave us a little hope, and Scott played with her toes some more. Her tail started moving up and down as he pressed between the pads. We were so excited!
Just then, her doctor called Scott thinking she had missed us, but he said we were still there so she came out to the waiting room. We said look at this, and made her tail move again. She said "Interesting..." but then let us know that it is probably just a reaction, and that her brain may not have any indication that anything is going on
She showed us her myelogram (sp) photos and explained what happened exactly. It seems more like she was predisposed to something happening. If this were to be a sudden trauma, it would have had to be a big trauma, like something falling on her. It may have just been going on over time and she jumped funny or fell funny and pushed it over the limit.
I asked about the deep pain thing, since she had only lost it for a few hours at the most, if her chances might be better than losing it for a day or so. She said no. Basically as soon as it gets to that stage, no matter how long or short a period they lose feeling, it's still just a 50% chance of recovery.
I also found out that she will not get her function to go to the bathroom on her own unless she regains the ability to walk. Going to the bathroom would come after that. So basically, if she ends up being in a cart, I will have to do that for her. I would hope she could still be a happy dog in that situation.
I know it's only a day after the surgery but I feel like there are SO MANY negatives it's really hard for me to feel so hopeful when every time I have a hope, there's something that says "No, that wasn't what you thought it was"